I am no stranger to forums, but I am very nice face here. I have been a betta fan since I was a young girl. I am an extreme animal lover, and since my college bound horse couldn't fit in my college dorm I opted for a betta. He has been dubbed Orville and is approximately a year and half old. He is an exceptional companion in a tiny dorm room. However, lately after a series of illnesses I am worried about transporting my little guy home for upcoming Thanksgiving and later Winter break.

I attend school two hours away. I do my best to keep my betta stationed in my dorm room and have my roommate take care of him when I'm gone for a weekend. However, this upcoming breaks are a week or more long and therefore I cannot leave my guy behind. Last year I wasn't so worried about transporting him. I have a rather large mug that is narrower at the bottom and wider towards the top. The bottom fits perfectly in my cup holder and the water stays very stagnate. I did attempt to place him in a larger container and cushion him on the floor of my car but the journey seemed to bumpy. However, I feel that the stress from his last time to my college really compromised his system. Within the past month he has been treated for both velvet and an internal bacteria infection which resulted in a large pink bump under his jaw.

He has thankfully recovered and back to his bubbly self, and I have extremely careful with his water. I have continued to do weekly water changes of gradually replacing around 30 percent.

He lives in a 2.5 gallon tank and does not have any tank mates. The water is heated but not filtered.

I was wondering if you guys had an suggestions about better ways to transport him to and from school. I would leave him with someone here to pet sit but the entire campus is required to leave during these breaks. I want to do my very best to avoid him getting ill again.

This is Orville in his little tank. This picture is about a year old and since then his decor has been upgraded to cave and multiple plants.

Welcome to the forum!
For a week, I think you'd actually be ok to leave him, as long as you did a 100% change before you left and when you came back. Bettas can easily go without eating for that long, so water quality really is the only worry there.

For more than a week, I would get a bag such as you buy fish in from the shops, fill it with a couple of cups of water, make sure plenty of air is trapped inside, then wedge it somewhere firmly in the car. If you can, add some tannins from Indian Almond or Oak Leaves to the water. If not, a little Stress Coat can be nice. For some shelter, if you can get hold of some java moss it may help him to feel more comfortable on the journey. If you can, cover the bag to keep it dark. This will reduce his stress levels.

Just a note on your water change schedule - you may want to consider upping it to a 50% change midweek and a 100% change at the end of the week. 30% weekly probably isn't getting rid of all the ammonia. :)

Thank you both for the wonderful advice and the welcome. I will definitely up my water changes to 50 percent midweek and full at the end of the week. I had heard false advice from a "betta breeder" in the area that those amounts were too much.

I can definitely keep him in a darker place on our drive during Christmas break. My car has a little pouch on the side of the driver's door that stays very still. I do have Stress Coat which I always keep handy which I'll place and see if I get some java moss.